Five Leinster sides will compete at the quarter-final stages of the Bob Kerr Irish Senior Cup today, with just one match an all Leinster affair.
Merrion host Phoenix at Anglesea road, and the holders will fancy their chances at home. Ben Ackland has hit form with the bat, scoring 89 and 123 his last two times out for Merrion, and his selection for the Ireland A side to take on the MCC will give him extra confidence. The Ballsbridge side will look to captain John Anderson for leadership, as he was their main run-scorer in this competition last year.
Phoenix will look to Jeremy Bray on the batting front, and on the bowling front of late! His figures on 3-18 from last weekend's victory over The Hills are not to be scorned. Dave Langford Smith will also be key on a Merrion track that is improving as every week goes by.
Another Leinster home tie sees Pembroke welcome Brigade to Park Avenue. The Northerners' bowling attack destroyed Clontarf in the last round - the team that the Foxes lost to badly last weekend. Dangerous openers Johnny Thompson and Mark Simpson will be ably supported by Rehman and spinners Britton and Hussein.
Pembroke have relied heavily on the run-scoring of skipper Stephen Moreton and professional Jono Hickey until now, so they will hope some of their younger players such as Ryan Hopkins and Theo Lawson will hit some form today. Alan Eastwood could also come back to bolster their bowling attack today.
Leinster have the tough draw of travelling to Waringstown. Their professional Pienaar scored 160 in their victorious top of the table NCU clash with North Down last week. This may be the last Irish Cup match he plays for the team, and Leinster will have to use all of their fighting spirit to make it through to the semi-finals.
Instonians and Railway have agreed to move their quarter-final up to today, and the Leinster side will be bolstered by the return of opening bowler Trent Johnston and spinner Greg Lambert. Kenny Carroll is still out with an ankle injury and is a big loss to the Sandymount side.
Instonians came through the last round after an unfortunate event during their match against Limavady, and will be looking to put that behind them. It's a big ask at short notice and away from home, especially against last year's finalists Railway.
Leinster are guaranteed at least one team in the semi-final, and I'm predicting that at least two other teams make it through along with the winner of the Anglesea road match. Here's hoping for sun!